Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) batting legend Virat Kohli has moved swiftly to dismiss circulating rumors regarding an alleged list of extravagant demands for the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL) season. Various media reports had suggested that the star batter requested dedicated chartered flight access between India and London to be available throughout the two month tournament.
Speculation Meets Reality
The rumors went as far as claiming that Kohli had informed the RCB franchise of his intent to fly to London whenever a three day gap occurred between matches. According to these unverified reports, he allegedly planned to return to India only 24 hours before the team’s next scheduled fixture.
Kohli, however, was quick to address these claims with his trademark wit. Taking to his Instagram story, he shared a screenshot of the report accompanied by two laughing emojis, effectively rubbishing the speculation and signaling to fans that the story was entirely baseless.
Virat Kohli latest Insta story
A tight slap on all the media accounts who spread fake news for engagement. pic.twitter.com/bxciKKJsvo
— Dive (@crickohlic) March 22, 2026
Chasing History in the Title Defense
RCB is set to begin their title defense against Sunrisers Hyderabad on March 28 at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium. Following a historic 2025 season where Kohli secured his first IPL trophy in his 18th year with the franchise, the legendary batter is entering the new campaign focused on personal and team milestones.
Statisticians are closely watching Kohli as he stands on the precipice of several historic records. With 8,661 runs across 267 matches—including eight centuries and 63 fifties; he is currently laser focused on becoming the first player in IPL history to breach the 9,000 run mark. Furthermore, having amassed 9,085 runs for RCB across the IPL and the defunct Champions League T20, a successful 2026 season would make him the first player ever to score 10,000 runs for a single franchise in T20 cricket.
This pursuit of excellence follows a stellar 2025 run where Kohli finished as RCB’s leading run scorer and the third highest overall in the tournament, racking up 657 runs at an average of 54.75 and a strike rate of 144.71.
For Virat Kohli and RCB, the goal remains clear: ignore the “outside noise” and secure a second consecutive trophy for the Bengaluru faithful.
